Asserting that Kerala has no hidden agenda on the Mullaperiyar dam issue, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy on Saturday reiterated that the State was prepared to settle the contentious issue with Tamil Nadu by holding talks at any level.
“There is absolutely no truth on the reported contention by Tamil Nadu apprehending that Kerala was seeking to build a new dam at Mullaperiyar to replace the over century old huge water reservoir, that has begun developing breaches, to enhance the existing power generation capacity of the Idukki dam,” Mr. Chandy said.
Mr. Chandy’s assertion came in the backdrop of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa’s reported remarks recently that Kerala was seeking to build a new dam to boost the power generation capacity of Idukki dam.
The Kerala’s only concern is the security of lakhs people residing in four districts in the downstream of the huge dam which has outlived its life especially in the light of frequent tremors being experienced in the area, Mr. Chandy said, inaugurating the Chief Minister’s mass contact programme at the Collectorate premises here on Friday.
Tamil Nadu should approach the issue with greater sense of logics instead of viewing the matter on emotional lines, that could prove detrimental on both states, so that any effort in this direction produced solid results and the contentious issue is resolved in an amicable manner, he said.
Kerala, by building new dam, is committed to provide the required water to Tamil Nadu and the neighbouring State need not have to have any apprehensions in this regard, he said.
“Kerala wants to settle the issue in the interest of lakhs of people residing in both the States and to maintain the century old cordial relationships between the two States and is prepared to hold talks at any level so that an amicable solution is arrived at, he maintained.
Kerala, during his recent meetings with the Central leadership including Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in New Delhi could garner positive response from the government and judiciary, he said.
Local MLAs and local body representatives and senior administration officials were present at the venue, which was virtually suffocating with huge turned out of people from across the district.
